Auckland Council
Parks Services Graduate (Feb 2025)
Auckland
Opportunity expired
Opportunity details
- Graduate Job or Program
- NZD 62,000 - 66,000 / Year
- Remuneration includes a 12 month review.
- 2 vacancies
- Apply by 19 May 2024
- Start date 9 Feb 2025
He angitūtanga: The opportunity
As a Parks Services graduate, you will help enable services that encourage Aucklanders to connect with nature, be champions for a sustainable and green environment, and celebrate our Māori identity and heritage. We’re looking for graduates who want to give back to communities by improving, protecting, and developing local spaces. Our network of 4,000 parks is already world-class and provides a wide range of environmental, cultural, social, and recreational benefits to the people of Auckland.
You will work on a range of projects, research and programmes which will involve working within various teams across the Parks and Community Facilities department, including (but not limited to):
- Regional Arborists and Ecologists: Manage our green portfolio of assets, including our Urban Ngahere and ecological areas on parks. Learn about arboriculture street tree management and pest plant management.
- Area Operations: Manage the maintenance contracts for buildings e.g., libraries and pools, as well as the maintenance and management of parks and reserves and delivery of development and renewal projects for parks assets.
- Parks and Places: Develop Park concept plans and network plans and learn from experts in open space management, often dealing with complex park management issues.
- Regional Parks and Botanic Gardens: Look after the services delivered across regional parks in conservation, recreation, partnerships, and programmes. Engage people with plants and gardens at the Auckland Botanic Gardens.
- Volunteering and Programmes: Deliver targeted ‘connect to nature’ and community-led restoration and ecological programmes. Learn about budget management, planting, volunteer management and advocacy.
- Te Waka Tai Rangawhenua: Manage our tupuna maunga (volcanic cones) and other co-governance spaces in partnership with mana whenua. Learn about co-governance, and operations from a Te Ao Maori perspective.
He kōrero mōu: About you
You will be driven and motivated to learn, give back to your community, and care for the environment. With strong collaboration skills, you will easily engage with a diverse range of customers and stakeholders and confidently convey verbal and written information. You will be organised, flexible, a team player, able to work collaboratively and happy to put your hand up!
We welcome applications from graduates in the following disciplines:
- Conservation
- Geography
- Ecology
- Parks Management
- Recreation
- Sociology
- Māori or Pasifika Studies
To be eligible to apply, you must have the following:
- Be eligible to work in New Zealand, or be eligible to apply for a Post-Study Work Visa
- A relevant bachelor’s or master’s degree obtained in January 2023 – January 2025.
- At a minimum, have a valid NZ restricted driver’s license, a full license is preferred.
Hiring criteria
- No experience required
- New Zealand Citizen +more
- Humanities, Arts & Social Sciences +more
- Bachelor or higher
Reviews
So far not much work. Just online training. Looking at examples of geotech review reports, reading Auckland Design Manual - Earthworks & Geotechnical Requirements
My role has gotten very broad since new projects have started and colleagues have left. Sometimes it feels too much but I enjoy being busy. I work largely in excel and am now considered a subject matter expert on spreadsheets, data structures and budget changes.
Role is to look through resource consent applications and provide specialist advice. Mostly office based but there are some site visits.
About the employer
Auckland Council
4.4
1,000 - 50,000 employees
Government & Public Service
Right now, we are working on large-scale projects right across our thriving region that are creating the future of our city.
Pros and cons of working at Auckland Council
Pros
The opportunity to try different areas of work and ultimately focusing on learning the job rather than only on performance.
I appreciate the constant reassurance that our health and wellbeing is crucial in this job. There are a lot of processes involved in making sure we are working in a safe environment, and that there is a priority in making sure we're well. I appreciate how flexible the job is to our lives, and the mass number of employee benefits we get. Though this shouldn't be the case, it feels as though I'm working for a company that sees me as a person with my own personal life. I don't feel awkward or guilty for needing to see doctors, taking time off when I needed etc. The fact that we're instantly given sick leave at the start of our contract is really great. Overall, I feel as though the priority in making sure our health and wellbeing is support is one of the best things about working for Auckland Council.
Workplace flexibility is the best thing about working at Auckland Council. It allows me to complete better work as I'm able to keep well rested with more time in my days due to less travel time to and from work. It also provides an environment where I can focus my thoughts better when I am working from home compared to being in the office. However, on the flip side, it is also nice to have a hybrid working situation where I spend half of my week in the office to attend important meetings and strengthen relationships with my colleagues.
It looks after its people. There is a great balance between work life and personal life. Workload is manageable. There is support available whenever needed. Great pool of experienced and knowledgeable people in the team. This makes it a great place to work in.
In graduate programme, I enhanced my experience in rotating in different teams, all the co- works there are so kind to share experience and teach me the technical skills.
Cons
Working for a local government organization like Auckland Council comes with significant pressure, primarily due to the high expectations and scrutiny from the public. The decisions we make directly impact the community, and this responsibility can be quite demanding. There's a constant need to balance the diverse needs and concerns of residents, which can be challenging. However, it's also an incredibly rewarding environment for professional development. The work is meaningful and varied, providing ample opportunities to gain new skills and experience. It's a great place to grow professionally while making a positive difference in the community.
I'm yet to experience anything bad about working at Auckland Council. If I were to give one output, I would have to say the lack in funding results in technological issues and lengthened work processes.
My experience as a graduate was always pretty good. Maybe too many restructures which gives general staff an unsecure feeling for their jobs.
I don't think there is many negatives to working here so far. If I had to say what the worst thing was it would be how things can move slowly at points.
People not coming into the office as frequently - makes collaboration more difficult